A teenager was allegedly shot April 13 by a homeowner in Missouri when he approached the wrong house to pick up his siblings, sparking protests.
Ralph Yarl, 16, attempted to pick up his siblings as a favor to his parents when an alleged misread of the address had him approaching the wrong home in Kansas City, police said, according to KSHB. Just before 10 p.m. officers with the Kansas City Police department were called to the scene where they discovered Yarl outside of the home wounded with a “life-threatening” injury, according to The Associated Press (AP). (RELATED: Teen Allegedly Shot By DC Officer Sitting Behind Him In Car)
“Despite the severity of his injuries and the seriousness of his condition, Ralph is alive and recovering,” Yarl’s attorneys, S. Lee Merritt and Benjamin Crump, said in the statement, according to CNN.
Chief Graves spoke with media regarding updates in the case involving the juvenile who was shot Thursday night. pic.twitter.com/ZTHPbwWcto
— kcpolice (@kcpolice) April 16, 2023
Police Chief Stacey Graves revealed the homeowner who allegedly shot Yarl was taken into custody and put on a 24-hour hold after which point they were released pending further investigation with the Clay County Prosecutor’s office. While investigators have stated there is no evidence the shooting was racially motivated, Graves assured the public it has not been dismissed as a possibility. Investigators are currently determining whether the shooting falls under the parameters of Missouri’s “Stand Your Ground” laws, The AP reported.
The incident sparked a protest which saw hundreds of people gather outside of the home where Yarl was allegedly shot, CNN reported. Chanting “justice for Ralph” and “Black lives matter,” protestors carried signs which read “Ringing a doorbell is not a crime” and “The shooter should do the time,”according to footage from KMBC.
“We are praying for healing for Ralph,” one of the organizers told the outlet. “We want to open the eyes of Kansas City to this injustice.
“We demand swift action from Clay County prosecutors and law enforcement to identify, arrest and prosecute to the full extent of the law the man responsible for this horrendous and unjustifiable shooting,” the statement from the Yarl’s attorneys read, according to CNN.
Though the investigation is ongoing, Graves told protestors she was aware of the concerns from the community, assuring the public at a Sunday press conference that she was “listening,” KSHB reported.